Press Releases

Accountability at the VA

Congressman Doug Lamborn has issued the following statement after voting in favor of S. 1094, the Department of Veterans Affairs Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act:

"The VA's shoddy treatment of some veterans is a shameful stain on America. It's time to clean house in the VA and remove the negligent employees that are harming our heroes. That's why one of the first actions I took this year was to introduce VA accountability legislation. I have called on my colleagues in the House and Senate to enact stricter measures to control the hiring and firing of misbehaving employees and improve veterans' care.

I am encouraged by the passage of this bill, and I urge Congress to pass additional reform legislation to improve the situation at the VA. Fortunately, we now have a President and a VA Secretary who are dedicated to fixing the problems. When we make accountability a reality, we will restore honor, integrity, and trust to the relationship between the VA and our nation's brave veterans."

- Congressman Doug Lamborn (CO-05)

More information from the Veterans Affairs Committee

The Department of Veterans Affairs Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act of 2017 would:

• Create a new streamlined and efficient process to remove, demote or suspend (for longer than 14 days) any VA employee for poor performance or misconduct with a concrete shortened timeline, while still protecting employees' due process rights, and would provide them with the right to appeal the action.

• Provide expanded protections for whistleblowers and would specifically bar VA from using this removal authority if the employee has an open whistleblower complaint/case with the Office of Special Counsel.

• Provide the Secretary with the authority to reduce an employee's federal pension if they are convicted of a felony that influenced their job at VA; recoup a bonus provided to an employee who engaged in misconduct or poor performance prior to receiving the bonus; and allow the Secretary to recoup any relocation expenses that were authorized for a VA employee only through the employee's ill-gotten means, such as fraud waste or malfeasance.

• Authorize the Secretary to directly appoint individuals to the positions of Medical Center Director and Director of Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN) if they have a demonstrated ability in the medical profession, health care administration or health care fiscal management. This will make it easier to fill these critical positions quickly.